Uzbekistan spearheads digitalisation and connectivity in Central Asia
The Tashkent International Investment Forum took place last week and highlighted the importance of digitalisation and connectivity, as well as the role of public-private partnerships in developing efficient transport.
All participants to the Forum underlined the importance of end-to-end digital solutions in transport in order to guarantee transparency in trade and efficiency in logistics.
IRU TIR and Transit Director, Tatiana Rey-Bellet, stressed the need for harmonised solutions, noting that such solutions already exist and are actively used in Uzbekistan, in the region and worldwide.
In this regard, Uzbekistan’s Deputy Minister of Transport mentioned TIR digital projects, which Uzbekistan is spearheading in the region by activating TIR digital corridors with neighbouring countries.
The TIR and CMR systems, two instruments based on UN conventions, are currently undergoing a transition from a paper environment, i.e. linear data flows, to a digital environment, which implies integrated and inclusive data circulation. They are both of particular importance for international road transport.
The Secretary General of the Transport Corridor Europe Caucasus Asia programme (TRACECA), Asset Asavbaev, praised IRU’s efforts in digitalisation. He emphasised the importance of the TRACECA corridor for regional connectivity, and the need to have harmonised instruments supporting intermodal transport.
Tatiana Rey-Bellet added that all the current efforts to digitalise TIR are leading to the fastest transition to eTIR, based on Annex 11 of the TIR Convention. The next step will be to enhance and expand the existing solutions to maximise their benefits.
Ahmed Zafar from TCS Holdings, a large courier and logistic company in Pakistan, shared the company’s experience in carrying out TIR transport from Pakistan to Uzbekistan, starting from the very first pilot last year.
The company used TIR IT tools, which sends identical information on TIR transport to all customs authorities along the route, thus facilitating controls at the borders and traceability of transport for the company. At the time of the Forum, a TCS TIR truck was crossing Afghanistan and heading to Uzbekistan.